A Friend in Need
by Writerdragon
Summary: All she wanted was a friend. Someone to care for her . . . But she never did, just a bear that would force her to steal and do his bidding. Then she met a group of famous kung fu masters that seemingly cared . . . S/T, P/OC.
1. Me, myself, and I

I'm taking a little break from writing MvA fanfics.

Hey, yes, it's a Shifu/Tigress fic. I find this couple cute. :3 I will (someday) create a Po/Tigress fic. This fic will have a total of five OCs (original characters). There's some slight Crane/Viper.

Yuming, Huo, Hong, Yin, and Yang © me. Touch them; I kill you. They are mine, with all their cuteness (except Huo, he can rot in Hell).

Kung fu panda © Dreamworks

Fic, and OC characters © To viva la dumbass.

Re-updated from old one.

* * *

A friend in need

Me, myself, and I

1

Yuming Qiaohui, a Eurasian lynx, slipped into the night. She was a cunning thief with a sharp mind. Her pointed ears flickered to every sound that came to her. She heard a cry of delight, a washing sound, and footsteps. She had a bite mark in one ear, lost one finger on her left hand, and was long-nailed. The whites of her eyes were black, and her eyes were green. She had large and small spots on her body. Her tail flickered from fear and confused. Yuming had to be careful; night was dangerous, epically with _him_ out. Her fur rose to the slightest noise.

The lynx crept on the outskirts of a small village. A few of the huts lights were on. She was hungry. Yuming was in need of food, _now_. The lynx crawled low, under the window of a village home. The smell of dumplings filled her nostrils. And there they were, out on the windowsill, cooling. She quickly nabbed one, and placed it into a nap-sack.

Yuming swiped another one, and another, until she got three. She stuffed the sack with her other items. She crawled off into the forest, and climbed up onto a rock, and began to nibble on the dumplings. Her eyes were vacant. She was all alone in the world. _Me, myself, and I_, she whispered in her head.

The cracks of twigs erupted in the dead silence. Yuming stopped dead in her tracks. Her dumpling was half-finished when she stopped. A blue bear stepped out of the thicket. He wore grey pants with patches on the knees. His eyes glowed with savage intelligence, his teeth gleamed yellow as his eyes. It was him—Huo. Yuming leapt up into the air with surprise.

"Huo!" she cried.

He gave a snort. "Well, well, if it en't little Thief," Huo hissed. "Where's my payment?"

Yuming trembled, and picked out the last two dumplings in her rucksack. She gave them to the tall bear. He took them from her and ate them up. Huo patted her cheek roughly. "Good girl," he whispered. "Now, where is my other payment?"

"Please, Master Huo, I'll get y-your money," Yuming stammered out.

"You better," Huo hissed. "You don't want me to kill you, now do you?"

The lynx's ears flattened against her head. "No!" she cried, trembling. She didn't show tears, she controlled that well enough.

Huo nodded. "Good girl," he said, turning his back on her. "Now, don't try to run. I'll find you." The great bear vanished in the shadows.

Yuming was convoluted a little, cold sweat running down her furred face. She sighed and finished off her last dumpling. She moved on. The lynx had to find money, and she knew one place where she could go—the Jade Palace. There was money and weapons by the room-fills—so she was told. She came from Russia, and wasn't native to China, though her ancestors came from a small village in China. Yuming was still surprised she had a Chinese name while she lived in Russia.

And how did she know that Huo character? It began when she asked directions to get to a village. He helped her, but wanted money, something she didn't have. So he told her to find some yen to steal. And she did. When Yuming brought it back, he was surprised how well she stole. Then it snowballed from there. Poor Yuming, she didn't want to work for him anymore.

By the way it looked on the map; the lynx wasn't too far from The Valley of Peace. A day or so, she'd be there. But she had to find shelter. Yuming found a cave, but it was occupied by a large reptile, an alligator of sorts. His nose was long, with a few teeth sticking out, he was fairly old, wore shaman-like attire, and held a staff with a curve at the end. His eyes glowed yellow as he gazed calmly at her.

"I'm sorry for disturbing you," she said, bowed, and left.

He watched as she went. The reptile scribbled something on the ground, and let his hand rest over it a little. He closed his eyes in silence. He pulled back. "This doesn't look good," he whispered. The reptile sat up and gazed out of the cave. Yuming was long gone and it was raining.

* * *

Yuming was in the hard rain. It was more like bits of hail rather than water. It bruised her skin under her wet, matted fur. But she was used to this; after all, she lived in Russia. She huddled under a thickly foliaged tree, and that is where she slept. She awoke and continued on her journey, (almost) by the sun set of the day, she found The Valley of Peace.

It was a rather small town filled with rabbit, geese and pigs. They looked at her as she passed, as if she was some alien. Yuming guessed that these people never seen a lynx before. She found a noodle shop and entered. It was filled with geese, rabbit and pig customers. She waited in line and got a bowl of noodles from a goose and paid.

She found no place to sit, so she sat on the cement window that was circular. Yuming sat with one leg on each side and rested the noodles on her palm and ate. She was relaxed well enough, until she heard something the others didn't: a faint scream. Her ears were sensitive enough to pick up the sound over the rumbles of the crowd. And there it was again, like a faint and weak yelp. Yuming put her bowl down and followed the sound.

She was lead to the back of an alley, where she saw three wolves pick on two rabbits. The wolves younger than her—thirteen, fourteen—and the rabbits both looked seven. The leader wolf was holding one upside down and shaking him. The other one was begging him to stop, but they just laughed.

"Hey!"

All turned to her.

"Why don't you pick on someone your own size, huh!?"

* * *

A/N: Yuming is a Eurasian lynx and Huo is a blue bear (look them up, they're not really blue).


	2. Yin and Yang

Second part is here!

* * *

Yin and Yang

2

"Um, who are you?" growled the black wolf.

"Bub, I'm your worst nightmare," Yuming said.

The three wolves laughed, the main one dropped the rabbit he was holding. They scampered over behind to the lynx, hiding behind her leg.

"Hah! You think you can fight me, kitty?" he growled.

The other two wolves gave a few vocal sounds. The rabbits looked like twins, but each had a spot over his or her eye. The female rabbit had the black spot over her left eye, and the male had a black spot over his right eye. The girl had an earring in her ear, while the boy had a bite mark in his ear. Both rabbits had huge ears, and large tails. "Help," whispered the male rabbit.

The lynx nodded. She stepped forward, and she moved her right foot back and her left foot frontward. Her right arm went up, and her lower her left hand at her breast, outward. The wolves laughed at her. "You wanna fight?" called the leader wolf.

He pulled a knife, and held it up, like a stab. He came at her, and she blocked, stole his knife from his hand, and locked his head in her arm—choking him. The black wolf gagged, unable to breathe. The rabbits watched in awe as the two other wolves yelled:

"Let him go!"

"You're hurting him!"

Yuming pushed the wolf away, and allowed him to recollect himself. He was surprised how fast she moved; it was like blinking. She tossed the knife back to the pup. "You don't hold a knife like that—" she said, acting like she had a knife in her hand and stabbing, "—you hold like this." She held out her hand like she had a knife, and swiped an invisible belly in one smooth motion.

The wolf rubbed his neck and held his knife the way Yuming showed him. He attacked her, but she knocked the knife out of his hand, and pulled back his arm, over his head. He cried out in pain. The two other wolves called out:

"You're breaking his arm!"

"Stop! Stop!"

Yuming pushed him back until he crashed with his brothers. The two rabbits cheered out. Then all three wolves attacked the lynx. In a few minutes, she beat them all into a bloody pulp. There was swearing and blood. The wolf pups were resting on a ledge, holding and nursing their wounds. Yuming brought cold rags to them and pressed them to her wounds.

"I wanna go home," whimpered one wolf pup, who was brown and black.

"Get over it," Yuming hissed, roughly pressing the cold rag on his forehead. "You boys need to learn yer lessons. Ya'll think bein' a man is beating up on others is fine an' alright, but it en't. You don't do stuff like that. Bein' a real man is to protect others and yer family."

The boys nodded. Yuming helped them with their wounds. The rabbits watched with awe and lightly giggled at the boys. The wolf pups cast a cold glare at them and they went silent. Yuming sat them over near a brush. Crowds gathered around, watching Yuming fix the pups up.

"Where'd you live?" she asked the wolves.

A white and black wolf pointed south. "Over there," he said.

"C'mon," she said, helping the pups up.

She half-carried, half-walked, the one pup that was hurt the most. The other two pups staggered along. The rabbits hopped along, a smile on each of their faces. They came to a small family market. A female grey wolf started to chop up a carrot. She gasped.

"My boys!" she cried, running to her children. She rushed over to them, holding each of them. She glanced over at Yuming and the two rabbits. "What happened?"

Yuming gazed over at the black pup. "Well, tell her," she said. "A _real _man would tell the truth."

The mother wolf looked over at her sons. "Darlings, what is she talking about?"

The black wolf looked away. "We were picking on those two rabbits for money," he said, looking very ashamed of himself.

The mother looked surprised and angry. "Well, go to your rooms, now!" she yelled, pointing to the building. "Your father and I will decide your punishment soon!"

The boys scurried to the building. Yuming had told everything to the mother and she nodded understandingly. The mother wolf treated the three of them to free noodles and drink, to which they accepted. The rabbits clung close to the lynx. "What's your name?" asked the little girl one, drinking her water.

The lynx gazed down at her. "Yuming Qiaohui," she answered with a smile. "What's yours?"

"Yin," said the girl. "And this is my brother Yang."

Yuming nodded. "So, which of ya is the evil sibling?" she asked with a smile.

Both rabbits pointed at each other. Yuming laughed.

"Thanks for helping us," Yang said.

Yuming smiled. "Hey, t'was nothin'," she said, and gave a hand gesture like: "Sure." Yuming looked around. "So, where are your parents?"

"Um, out for a few days," Yin said, slurping up her noodles.

Yuming was taken aback. "They just left you two?!"

Yang nodded. "Yeah, they normally do stuff like that," he said, shrugging his shoulders. "They're merchants."

"Do you know kung fu?" Yin asked, a little giddy.

Yuming nodded. "Yes, my Master—my father—knew Leopard Style very well," she said, her smile vanishing from her face. "And he taught me . . ."

"Do you know the Furious Five?"

Yuming looked down at both of the rabbits. "The what?" she asked.

Both rabbits gasped. "You don't know who the Furious Five are!?" Yin called.

"Um, no—"

"They're five of the strongest kung fu masters in all of China!" Yang said in a loud voice.

"Well, I just came here," Yuming said. "I'm from Russia. So I've never heard of these people."

Both brother and sister looked at each other, then at the large female glassy-eyed cat. They haven't heard of any place called "Russia" before. Yuming explained where it was, and both rabbits nodded. "That seems far to walk."

Yuming laughed. "Yes, it was," she said.

Yang finished his drink and food and began to pull at the leg of Yuming. "I bet Master Shifu would like to see you," he said. "You're really good at Leopard Style kung fu."

"Is he a Fantastic Five?"

"_Furious_ Five. And no, he taught them kung fu," Yang said. "He may just be looking for another student to teach. You should go."

"Why?"

"He didn't have a student who knew Leopard Style since Tai Lung," Yang said sadly.

"Who's Tai Lung?"

"Tai Lung was the first student of Shifu," Yin said. "He was snow leopard and was really strong. He went crazy when he didn't get the Dragon Scroll. So Tai Lung nearly killed Shifu, but he was locked by Master Oogway—he created kung fu one thousand years ago—an stayed in prison for twenty years. He broke out not too long ago and was defeated by the Dragon Warrior."

"Huh," Yuming said. "Who's the dragon warrior?"

"He's a panda called Po!" Yin said.

Yuming laughed. "A _panda_?!" She stopped laughing then looked at the two rabbits' serious faces. "Oh, you mean it."

"Yes!" both rabbits said in unison.

"Okay, so where are these kung fu masters?" Yuming asked.

"Up there." Yin said, pointing up.

Yuming turned around and saw a long stream of rock stairs that went up to a building on top of a mountain. She could feel her eye twitch a bit. _Damn_. She turned away and finished what was left of her noodles. "Well, onward!" she cried, and walked over to the first step. The rabbits smiled and followed Yuming, and began their long trek to the Jade Palace.


	3. The very long trip up the stairs

The very long trip up the stairs

3

Yuming was thirty steps up before she grew tired. The rabbits followed after her, hopping around her, like little balls of energy. "C'mon, c'mon!" they cried. The lynx meowed a little. "I'm more outta shape than I thought," Yuming said.

Yang laughed. "Yuming, c'mon, let's go!" he cried, pulling at her arm.

Yin pulled at her other arm. "Yeah, Yuming, I can still see the bottom," she said.

Yuming looked down, and saw the bottom of the steps. She sighed and shook a little. The lynx picked up both of the rabbits like barrels of hay. They laughed in delight. "Okay, kids!" she said. "Time to climb!"

She put the rabbits on her back, and went on her fours, and the children rode her like a horse. Yuming moved her torso up and down like a bucking bronco. They giggled. She climbed up the steps, running on all fours. Yuming slowed down a little, walking at a normal pace.

"So, what do the Funky Five look like?" Yuming asked.

"The _Furious_ Five!" cried Yin. "And they're awesome! There's Crane! And Monkey!"

"Viper! And Tigress! And Mantis!" Yang finished. "And Master Shifu's cool! But I don't know what he is? A fox?"

"He's not a fox!" Yin cried. "It's obvious that he's a squirrel!"

"Fox!"

"Squirrel!"

"What if he's neither?" Yuming said, scaling up a few steps. "What does he look like?"

"He's old—"

"He's short—"

"Master Shifu has a fluffy tail!" Yin cried in glee.

"And huge ears," Yang said, tugging at his ears.

Yuming laughed. "Well, I guess I need to see him," she said. They were pretty far up. She gazed behind and could barely see the ground. The group was half-way up. "Okay, kids, my back is hurting. Ev'ryone off," she said.

Both rabbits got off of her. Yuming stood up on her two back feet, rubbing and cracking her back. Her tail trembled a little, her ears flattening. The sun was bearing peaking above the mountain ridges. Both rabbits took both of her hands, a smile coming to her lips.

Yuming hung back. "No! Go on without me!" she cried, falling to the steps, faking every bit. "Save yourselves!"

The rabbits laughed, and helped her up.

"C'mon, Yuming," Yang said. All three made it to the top, Yuming dragging behind, crawling on her knees and hands. Yin and Yang laughed.

"I'm coming!" she said as she rolled on her back. "Yeah! Whoo! I made it!"

The rabbit children giggled.

"We made it!" Ying cried, throwing up her hands.

"Yeah, c'mon!" Yang said, pulling the lynx.

Yuming let out a wheeze of exasperation. Another smile came to her face. There were two heavy wooden doors. She pushed them open and saw a dojo. The rabbits ran and the lynx followed them. There was another set of doors and opened them. What she saw was weapons, hanging objects, and metal floors. It was a ninja's dream, and the lynx was acting like a little girl.

She was looking around like everything she could just take home and no one would notice. Then Yin said, "Master Shifu trains the Five here. You should try it."

"Are you sure?" the lynx asked.

"Just try! Just try!" Yang cried.

Yuming rolled her eyes whole-heartedly. "Oh, okay," she said. "I'll give it a go."

The rabbit children cried in mirth. Yang ran over to some switch and turned on the weapons. Yuming walked over to the front of the obstacle course. She took in a deep breath, and then lunged. She quickly dodged the seven clubs that aimed to hit her. Yuming knocked one off one of them, the chain braking, and sent it flying.

Then Yuming moved to the next course, leaping over a jade turtle. Then she went over to a wooden obstacle. She went through them, blocking and dodging like she was a willow. She broke a few of them, then moved over a metal floor, with holes. Fire came out. She evaded the blazes like she was water. Yuming finished with a smile. The lynx could hear the cries of happiness from the rabbits.

"Go Yuming!" cried the male rabbit.

"You were awesome!" yelled the female.

She smiled, and then frowned. She saw a small red-and-white animal with huge ears and with two long white whiskers and a small beard. She saw a crane, a heavy-set panda, a golden monkey with a green mantis on his shoulder, a tiger with her arms over her breast, and a green snake. The lynx's ears twitched.

"Um, kids, turn around," Yuming whispered.

The rabbits did and gasped. "Master Shifu!" they cried, and bowed. "And the Furious Five! And the Dragon Warrior!" Yang said with a smile. "See, Yuming! See!"

Yuming came over, her ears flat. Shifu looked at the damage that the lynx has caused. He could easily tell that she was a skilled in kung fu. Shifu could tell that she had an accent on her; it was heavy and thick. His huge ears twitched, a smile creeping along his lips. "_You_ did this?" he asked.

"Okay, look," Yuming said, "It was all their fault—" she pointed at both rabbits. "—I had nothing to do with this! They tricked me!"

Yin playfully slapped the leg of the lynx. "Hey! Stop! _You_ agreed!" she said with a smile.

"Yeah!" said Yang, lightly pushing her.

Shifu watched them. "Yin, Yang, it's nice to see you two again," he said.

"Nice to see you, Master Shifu," Yang and Yin said, bowing.

The lynx nudged both of the children. "Just for your information, he's a red panda," Yuming said. "Not a fox or squirrel."

Shifu listened in. Yuming looked down at him. "They were wonderin' . . . that's all," she whispered. Then she pointed behind her. "I'll fix that."

"Ah, no need," Shifu said. "So . . . Yuming, right?"

"Yuming Qiaohui," the lynx said, with a pointed grin.

"Who taught you kung fu?"

"My papa. Who passed it down to me from his papa, and he passed it down from his father, who learned from a raccoon," Yuming said.

She heard a slight giggle from the students. It was the panda—she smiled at him. The two rabbits gave a grin at her. Shifu nodded. "What style?"

"Leopard."

He froze a little, only his right eye twitched a little. The female rabbit lightly hit her knee, she had a worried expression. Then Yuming remembered Tai Lung, and coughed a little. She clapped her hands. "Okay, so, we're sorry. We will leave."

"Do you have a place to stay?"

"Um . . . no. Is there an inn around here?"

"Not really."

"Okay then, I'll find elsewhere." Yuming was about to leave, until—

"You can stay here, all three of you," Shifu said. "We have room."

Both rabbits squealed in delight. They jumped at the unsuspecting lynx, knocking her down. The snake and the panda chuckled. "We can stay!" Yin said.

"C'mon, kids, get off," Yuming said, as the rabbits crawled off of her. She patted both of their heads with a smile.

The Five introduced themselves, and Yuming bowed to each of them.

"Well, it's nice to meet you all," Yuming said as they moved to the kitchen. "Yin and Yang told me all about you."

"You mean you never knew about us?" asked Crane.

"No, I'm from Russia."

"Where's that?" asked Viper, who was slithering at the lynx's feet.

"It's far out there, it snows a lot up there," Yuming said. "Though my ancestors come from China. Funny, huh?"

"How cold does it get up there?" asked Mantis.

"So cold, that if ya en't careful, you could die standing up," Yuming said. "It been known to happen. Bugs and reptiles can't stand it up there, only thick-furred animals. None of you couldn't survive—well, perhaps you, Tigress. Tigers can survive up in Russia."

Tigress smiled. "I had family up in the high mountains, maybe I have some family out there," she joked a little, though it was dry.

Viper gave a sly smile. "So, Yuming, nice name. Very pretty," she said.

"Oh, thanks . . . I guess," she whispered at the end.

They came to the kitchen. It was small, with a table in the middles with chairs. Each one of the Five and the master sat. Yuming helped the small rabbits up in the chairs. Po was cooking up food. It smelled good and Yuming was growing hungry. When Po severed the dinner, he gave her two polished sticks. She gazed at them, not understanding what to do with them. Then the others (besides Viper, Crane, and Mantis) ate with them. Po watched her fume with them.

"You don't use chopsticks in Russia?" Po asked, while he stopped eating.

She shook her head. "No," she said. "We use forks, spoons and knives," Yuming said, placing her chopsticks down, and picked up a spoon—something familiar to her. She looked over at her bean buns. "What are those?"

"Bean buns."

"Haven't been here long, have you?" Crane asked.

"No, I'm from Russia, not China," Yuming said.

"Then how do you know Chinese?" Tigress asked, eating some tofu.

Yuming gazed at her. "My family has known it for a long time, since my ancestors moved to Russia from China," she said.

"Say something in your language!" said Yin.

The lynx looked at the rabbit. "Okay," Yuming said. Then she spoke. Her language sounded hard, mean, and a little scary. But she had a happy smile on her face. Yuming stopped. "Well?"

Everyone gapped.

"I'm not going to lie to you," Shifu said. "That was a little . . . well, _creepy_."

Yuming laughed. "Yeah, many say that!" she said.

"What did you say?" asked Yang.

"'_Hello, my name is Yuming. What is yours?_'" Yuming said.

"Really?" Po asked. "That's so cool! Say something else!"

She spoke again, and she repeated it in Chinese. Yuming talked about her country and their traditions. She spoke about the harsh winters that came in Russia's way. The lynx mentioned the food and drinks, holidays and wars they had in the past. The Five, the rabbits, Shifu, and the Dragon Warrior listened fully, all interested.

"Your homeland seems so cool!" said Yin with a smile.

Yuming smiled, and rubbed the rabbit's head. "Why thank you, Yin," she said. "But China is just as interesting."

After dinner, Shifu showed her and the rabbits their rooms. Both brother and sister shared a single room, while Yuming moved into the room next to them. Well after midnight, Yuming awoke and searched the building. She mentally noted everything she could steal for money. The lynx felt as if she wasn't alone, as if Huo was watching her from the dark shadows.


	4. Training

Training

4

"Good morning, Master!"

Yuming turned in her half-awake, half-asleep mode. Her doors burst open and she saw the small shadow of Shifu. He had a reed flute in both of his hands, which was behind his back. He looked at her sternly. "Get up."

"Make me," Yuming hissed out, covering her face with her paw.

Shifu pulled off all the sheets of her body. "You get up, _now_," he said. "Everyone gets up at the same time. _Up!_"

She muttered something in her native tongue. "Fine, I'm up," she said, in Chinese. She out-stretched her paws, yawing. Yin and Yang rushed in, past Tigress and the giggling Viper.

"Yuming! Get up, time to train," Yin said, pulling at the lynx's shirt.

"Up! Up!" Yang cried in delight.

Viper and Tigress watched as Yin and Yang tormented poor Yuming. "They're so cute," Viper said, with a dreamy tone. "I would like to have my own children someday." She slithered by Tigress.

"I don't," Tigress muttered. "They seem to clingy and needy all the time. And they're a little annoying to me."

"You'll change your mind," Viper said in a matter-fact tone.

Then Yuming ran by the two kung fu master, screaming: "They're after me!" The two rabbits followed after her, laughing and giggling as Yuming dashed for her life. Tigress looked down at Viper, "I don't think so."

The lynx ran up to a training Po, who was practicing on a stuffed dummy. He was startled a little when Yuming dashed behind him and pushed him forward. "Save me, mighty Dragon Warrior!" she cried.

The rabbit children stopped as they saw Po. The panda pretended to be all strong, and ready for a fight. "Bring it on!" he said with a smile.

Yin and Yang gave each other quick glances, then smiled and charged at Po. They went for his bulging stomach and knocked him down. "Oh, you got me!" he cried as he pretended to be dead. Yang poked at his arm.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Duh," Po said with a smile.

Yuming grinned back. He was good with kids; that was for sure. "Okay, guys, leave him alone," she called to the children. Ying and Yang went to her as Po got up from the ground. Master Shifu came around the corner and saw all four of them.

"Yuming," he called to the lynx.

She became alert. "Yes?"

The small kung fu master came up to her. "You said you knew Leopard Style kung fu, right?" he asked.

"Yes."

"Then are you willing to fight me for practice?"

The spotted lynx blinked. He was an old man; she didn't want to hurt him. But the rabbit siblings had said that he trained the Furious Five, so he must be one good fighter. Yuming smiled. "Okay." She reverted into a kung fu stance, as he just stood there, with a small smile on his face. The others gave them room for the fight. She lunged, but he jumped_. Damn, he's fast_.

Shifu kicked her in the back, it wasn't hard or forceful, and it was more like: "I'm here." Yuming landed on all fours, her ears flickered. She charged again. The lynx snatched him by the leg, but he got out and gave her a quick whack, which she blocked with her huge paw. Then he noticed something, she was missing her middle finger on her left paw. But he shook it off and tried to attack her again with his reed flute.

Yuming hit the flute away; it nearly hit Crane in the head. She grabbed his tail, and tried to pull him down, but he kicked out of her grip. Yuming snarled, and used her very sharp claws to try to scratch him; he blocked every punch and incoming claws. Shifu jumped—she kicked him—right in the leg. She got him good, and she was about to pin him, but he punched her softly in the belly. Yuming jumped back, and snatched a bamboo staff, as Shifu snatched up his flute. She twirled it around, showing off a bit, before giving the aged red panda master a cocky grin.

He smiled back, and armed with his flute, he charged her. He had to admit; she was good—just as good as his students. Shifu leapt up, Yuming swung her staff, brushing his tail—she missed. The lynx blinked as everything registered, then Shifu came falling right for her face. Yuming used the bamboo staff to block him; he landed on the wooden weapon. She flung him down, he gave a surprised gasp, and she pinned him. _She won_.

Everyone was surprised. The young lynx had won. Shifu was breathing hard, and so was Yuming. He gazed at him with glowing black-and-yellow eyes. The red panda master smiled, "Good job," he said. "Your Master taught you well."

Yuming reduced her hold on him and helped him up. "Thank you, Master," she said and bowed to him.

Tigress was surprised, and the others cheered. The rabbits ran to her and engulfed her in a tight hug. Tigress was happy that she won, but she secretly hoped her Master would've won instead. The other masters and Po applauded Yuming as Shifu wandered over to his prized tiger student. "What's wrong, Tigress?"

She looked down at him. "Nothing," she said. "Good, isn't she?"

"Yes, yes she is," Shifu said.

Their locked eyes briefly then looked away, a faint blush forming on each other's faces. Zeng ran in, flapping his wings, with a single scroll in his hand. He fell in front of Shifu, breathing hard. "Hello, Zeng," Shifu said in a flat tone. "What is it?"

Zeng gave the scroll to the red panda. "It came from another messenger goose, and he gave it to me, it is for Ying and Yang, the rabbit children," Zeng said. He knew that the two rabbits had been living here since yesterday.

Shifu took the scroll and opened the wax seal. "Yin, Yang," he called. The rabbit children dashed over to the aged master.

"Yeah?" Yang said, playfully shoving his little sister.

Shifu gave the scroll to the small rabbit boy. He opened it and read it, his sister read over his shoulder. Not too long later, both began to tremble, Yin sobbed a little. Yang dropped the scroll, a surprised and saddened expression on his face. Before Shifu said anything, they dashed off, crying. Yuming watched as they ran, and followed them. The red panda picked up the scroll, it read:

_Dear Yin and Yang,_

_This is going to be bad news for you, but a fire was set in the village your parents were in. No one, but my family survived the blazes. I knew your parents and I'm so sorry for what happened. _

_The Zhou family_

Shifu looked away briefly for a moment, then gave it to Tigress, who read it with Viper. They were appalled. "What's wrong?" asked Po, twirling his fingers.

"The kids' parents are dead," Tigress said.

Silence fell upon the warriors. Meanwhile, Yuming found the two sitting under a peach tree. They were holding each other, and sobbed. The lynx could guess that it was something bad. She went over to them, and sat next to them. Yuming looked up at the sky.

"Mommy and Daddy are gone," whispered Yin.

Yuming's ears flattened. "I'm so sorry," she whispered. The lynx gazed at them. They looked so weak, so frail, as if they would shatter. The brother was trying his best to be strong for his little sister, but he was crying too. "Think of it this way: we are born into this world, we live our lives, and we die. But we don't truly die, it's just a sleep—you'll see them again soon."

Yin looked up from her brother's grasp. "When?" she asked, drying her face.

"In time," answered Yuming. "I know what it is like to lose a loved one, for I had lost my father and mother."

Yang and his sister looked at the lynx. Her body trembled. "Because of my weakness," she hissed. Yuming relaxed, and took in a breath. She helped both rabbits to their feet, and walked them back to the building, where Shifu and the others were waiting for them.


	5. Nightmare

Nightmare

5

_A very young Yuming stood by her weeping mother. She watched as her father was put in the ground, carefully. The minister, who was an aged snow leopard muttered a prayer, and swayed his staff. Incense was lit and the aroma filled the air. After the burial was done, her and her mother went back to the hut. The Russian winds blew against them, trying to push them down. Yuming's mother opened the door, and allowed her daughter to enter first. Not a word was spoken that evening, both sat in silence. Her mother began to cook dinner, which was fried fish. Both ate in silence._

_At night, she could hear her mother sob, and she too sobbed. The next day, a fire broke out, and her mother was trapped under a beam. Yuming saved her just in the nick of time before the flames engulfed her. Her mother was bleeding freely from her wounds. "Mama?"_

_She looked up, a smile formed on her face. "My little girl," she whispered. "You saved me . . ."_

"_Yes, of course," Yuming whispered in return._

_Her mother laughed ever so slightly, blood coming from her mouth. Yuming was in tears. "My little girl, it's not the end, we are born into this world, we live our lives, and we die. But we don't truly die, it's just a sleep."_

"_Don't leave me, Mama," Yuming sobbed._

"_I love you," she whispered. Her body slackened, becoming cold and lifeless._

"_Mama? Mama?" That was went Yuming realized that her waiting was in vain. "MAMA!!" She sobbed out her eyes._

* * *

_The snow leopard priest made a burial summing for Yuming's dead mother. Both husband and wife lay next to each other, even in death. Yuming looked hard at both tombstones. The snow leopard went up to her, "I'd take you in, but we just don't have room or the money . . ."_

_Yuming nodded. "That is fine, I'll be alright." And that was when she left her home town, for good. Never turning back, never glancing back._

* * *

Yuming woke up in a cold sweat. She sat up and glanced down at the two rabbits that lay in the bedroll with her. She allowed them to stay with her for the night. She nuzzled both of them before she got up and left the room. She was careful not to awake the Masters. _I'm going soft_, thought Yuming. She went to the kitchen and she saw Huo. She gasped.

"I told you that you couldn't run from me," he hissed, moving closer to her. "Where's the money?"

"I-I don't have it yet," she whispered.

He growled and moved closer, pushing her to a wall. "This place is mounted with money . . . and weapons!" Huo snapped. Then he pulled back. "You know what: I want you steal all the weapons here." He glared at her, snatching her by her collar. "Or is that a problem for you?"

"N-no! N-not in the l-least," stammered Yuming.

He let her go. "Good. I'll be back," he said with a sick smile on his face. Huo went out a window and was go into the night.

Yuming shuttered, and then took in a breath. Why couldn't she just fight him? She could easily kill him! The young lynx went outside, and left the palace. She found a creek at the foot of the rather large hill; it was covered by the shadow. She sat there, and glared at her reflection. Yuming looked up at the sky.

"You said you would be there for me!" she yelled at the moon. The lynx looked back at the water. Ripples from a rock that was thrown into the water spooked her. Yuming saw an alligator—it was the same one that she disturbed when she went to find shelter some couple of days ago. He had a smile on his aged face. His grey moustache and beard swayed in the breeze.

"Hello," he said.

Yuming blinked and then glared at him. "Well, what do you want?" she asked harshly.

He waddled over to her, still smiling. "Why out so late?"

"Why do you wish to know?" He said something in another language. Yuming shook her head. "What? What?"

He smiled. "My name is Hong," the large reptile said.

Yuming glared at him. Hong smiled and said something in that odd language, waving around his staff. "What are you saying?" she demanded.

"I just said you have no idea who you really are," the alligator said.

Yuming gapped. "What?" she snapped. "I know who I am!"

"Then who are you?"

She blinked, then sighed out of frustration. "Fine, I don't know who I am," Yuming muttered. "And like you would know."

"You are Yuming Qiaohui."

The lynx gasped in surprise. She whipped herself around, and noticed that he was gone. "Wait!" She ran off, trying to find him. She found Hong sitting on a cold, moss-covered rock, meditating. She wheezed and straggled over to him. "How did you know my name?"

"I am a shaman, I know all about you," Hong said, opening one eye at her. "You come from Russia. Father died and mother was killed. Brother went off to war, and never returned. Huo, a bear, now bullies you. I know a lot about you."

She was flabbergasted. This Hong guy knew so much about her, and even about the private things that were stored into her mind. Yuming shook her head, and glared at him. "Look, I don't know how you got this information, and I don't care! Just leave me alone—"

"And let you get hurt by Huo more and more? Like what he did to your ear and chopped off your finger?"

Yuming glared at the lizard. She then blushed, and looked away from shame. She gazed sadly at her three-fingered paw, staring at what was left on her middle finger. Yuming then allowed her fingers to glide over the rip marks on her ear. "I want to be free," she whispered.

"Then why don't you fight him?" Hong asked, closing his open eye. "You could easily kill him several times over."

"I know . . ."

"Then why don't you?"

"I don't know . . ."

"Alas, I do. It is because you are afraid. You _think_ you failed your father."

"But I _did_!" cried Yuming. "It is because of _me_! It was _my _fault that he died!"

Hong opened both of his eyes, and gazed calmly at her. His eyes were God-like, his smile that belonged to a loving man. Yuming felt odd under him—she began to melt under his stare. He sat up, shaking a little from age. "He doesn't blame you."

Yuming looked away. "He's dead," she whispered.

Hong looked saddened by the remark. "He is also very disappointed in you," the large reptile stated slowly. Yuming let out a growl, and stalked away. She went back to her room, to see the children playing a game in the candlelight. They looked up as she walked in. Yin ran to her.

"Yuming, where'd you go?" she asked, tugging at her pant leg.

The lynx picked up the small rabbit, and sat down on her bedroll. "I'm sorry," she said. "Did I scare you?"

The rabbit child nodded. Yang came over, and rested her paw on her knee. "We didn't see you and we freaked," he said.

Yuming smiled, and picked him up, too. "I'm sorry," she said. "But, let's sleep, okay?"

The rabbits nodded, and crawled back into the covers of the bedroll. Yuming curled up next to them, placing an arm around them. She pecked the foreheads of each of them. The lynx was startled by this and even more surprised when both kissed her cheek back.

"G'night, Yuming," Yin said, rolling on her side.

"'Night, Yuming," Yang stated.

She watched as they rested in her arms. Yuming watched as they slept, and glared at the window. She had a feeling that Huo was there. She released her claws from her fingers, and snarled lowly. She had to be prepared for anything.


	6. Of Yuming, Po, Shifu and Tigress

To, shifuandocfangirl95, you might have read this before. I deleted it and now I re-posted it.

* * *

Of Yuming, Po, Shifu and Tigress

6

Tigress could hear the worker rabbits, geese, and pigs repair the large hole that was made when Shifu and Tai Lung battled each other. Yuming helped them out from time to time, picking up large wooden boards, or collecting tools for them. But she noticed that the spotted lynx gazed hungrily at all the ancient weapons in The Hall of Warriors. The tiger master didn't understand why, perhaps she was a fan like Po. But her gaze was a little different . . . like _lust_ for that needed item.

Tigress also noticed that Yuming was overly paranoid. She was always looking over her shoulders, with a terrified expression. When Shifu came into her room to awake her, she was in a protective stance over the rabbit children, and was asleep. The tiger thought that there was something a little wrong about her, and wanted to talk to her.

Shifu had too noticed how Yuming reacted to things. When he walked up behind her during the day, her back was turned and she nearly attacked and jumped at his voice. She looked terrified until she saw who it was. The red panda master also seen how she horded her money like it was her cub. But his main concern was Tigress. For a little over a week, he acted very strangely around her or if he was near her. Shifu didn't understand what was wrong with him.

Yin and Yang followed the lynx everywhere, and practiced kicks with her. They watched as they demonstrated a form, they followed suit. After a little while, the two rabbits were still eager to stay with Yuming. They still missed their parents, though . . .

"Yuming, let's go to The Hall of Warriors," Yin said.

The grey-spotted lynx drew back her punch, and glanced over at the small rabbit child. "The hall of warriors?"

"Yeah, you have to come," Yang said, pulling her. "Please?" he added with his ears down and big-eyed.

Yuming raised her eyebrow at him. "Awright, where is it?"

The rabbits let out a cheer, and pushed Yuming along with them. She greeted the workers and looked down the hall. "Oh, this is it?"

"Yeah," Yin said. She scampered over to a suit of armor that was for a rhino. "This is Master Flying Rhino's armor." She then dashed over to a rack, which held nothing. "This is The Invisible Trident of Destiny." The lynx ran her paw over it, and felt something, which surprised her. The rabbit child then dragged her over to a green sword with a dragon carved in it. "This is The Sword of Heroes." Yang went over to an urn that had several cracks in it. "This is The Urn of Whispering Warriors," he said.

Yuming walked over to it. It was old looking and very calm looking. "How interesting," she whispered. _This stuff is worth somethin'_, she thought.

"Yuming!"

The spotted lynx looked up to see Tigress. She looked stern, her arms over her breast. "Could you come here?"

"Okay," she called. Yuming looked at the rabbits children. "Why don't you go run off and play?"

Yin and Yang nodded. The lynx practically skipped over to the tiger female, who looked at her like she was crazy. "Need somethin'?"

Tigress nodded, and yanked at the arm of the spotted lynx. "Come." Tigress released her, and Yuming followed the tiger master. "You've been acting odd all week," Tigress said nonchalantly.

"Whatta ya mean?" Yuming asked, a little frazzled.

"You always look around as if someone's going to attack you at any minute. Are you okay?"

Yuming blinked, and then smiled. _Lie_. "Oh, sorry, I'm just paranoid," she said. "I've had thieves jump me in the past. So, I always think the worse. Sorry."

Tigress looked at her for a brief moment, like evaluating her words. Then she gave a weak smile. "Okay, but you don't have to be—you're safe here."

Yuming faked a sigh. "Oh, thanks, that's a relief," she said. Tigress walked away, and Yuming frowned. "Yeah, right! Like I'm safe!" She stalked off, and found the two rabbits. She felt an odd feeling when she saw them play—it felt like that same emotion that she had for her family. Yuming blinked, and shook her head. "Yin! Yang!"

The rabbits pulled away from the tall dummy, and ran over to her. "What did Master Tigress want?" Yang asked.

The lynx smiled. "Oh, nothing," she said. "Now, let's practice some kicks, huh?"

It became dusk soon, and Po began to cook his usual soup, but he added fish. Everyone but Yuming was sitting at the table. "Where's Yuming?" asked Po, addressing Yin.

She looked up at the panda. "I don't know," she said, shrugging her shoulders. "She left after she finished teaching me and my brother a kick." Yang nodded.

Po set down the soup dishes. "I'll go look for her, you guys go ahead and eat," he said, taking Yuming dinner and his.

Yuming was under The Sacred Tree of Heavenly Wisdom, looking down into the abyss under her. Her gaze was blank, her eyes were empty. She stood there, glaring unblinkingly into the endless pit. "If I just jump, it'll be a quick death," Yuming said to herself. "Just jump; end it all." The lynx heard crunching of grass behind her; she turned to see a smiling Po with to dishes.

"There you are!" he said, running up to her. "We're having dinner." He gave one bowl to the spotted cat.

Yuming smiled. "Thank you, Po." She saw the spoon, and began to eat. The lynx sat down onto the grass, as did Po.

"What were you doing out here?" he asked.

"Oh, just enjoying the fresh air, that's all," she lied.

Po let his gaze wander over to her hand. He noticed that her middle finger was missing. "What happened to your hand?" he asked, frazzled.

Yuming lifted her paw up, allowing him to look at it. "I lost it in a fight," she said. She wasn't lying here; she did lose it in a fight . . . with Huo. Po examined the paw, looking at the little stub that was left for a finger.

"Same with your ear?"

Yuming nodded.

"I'm sorry," Po whispered.

The lynx gave a dry laugh. "Oh, don't worry about it," she said.

Po looked at her. "Hey, everyone's looking for you—they're waiting for you to come to dinner," he said with a smile.

Yuming blinked, and looked over at him. "R-really?"

The heavy panda nodded, grinning broadly at her. "Yeah, c'mon, let's go."

She looked at him, smiled a little, and bobbed her head. Both got up and walked over to the kitchen. When dinner was finished, everyone went to bed. Yuming began to notice the way Shifu was acting around Tigress. It was weird: he would lose track of what he was saying, fumble, and gaze dreamingly at her. She then was surprised when Shifu wanted to talk to her. Yuming found him sitting by the Moon Pool in The Hall of Warriors.

"Did you want to see me, Master Shifu?" she called.

He turned to her. "Ahh, Yuming, yes," he said. The lynx sat next to him. "You've been acting odd lately, I've noticed."

She sighed. "Look, Tigress said the same thing to me," Yuming began. "I'm sorry; it's just that I'm extremely paranoid."

The red panda raised an eyebrow to her. "Alright," was all that he said. Yuming sighed then said:

"Master, I've noticed that you've been acting odd around Master Tigress," she said with a sly smile on her face.

He glared at her, his cheeks burning. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, stumbling for words, looking love-struck whenever she passes you—what's going on there, Master?"

"None of your business!" he snapped at Yuming. Then he sighed: "I think I love her."

Yuming's ears twitched. "Really?"

Shifu nodded. "Yes, but how can she ever love me back . . .?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, look at me: I'm an old man. Why would she want someone as old as me? Tigress has a good chance to get someone much younger than me. She'd laugh at me if she found out," Shifu said, his ears becoming flat on his head.

Yuming looked at the aged red panda. "Well, you don't know that, just tell her. She may feel the same way. Ya see, love has no boundaries: race, age, gender—whatever, love can enter a person's heart. If you love her, and she loves you, then she won't care if you're older, she'll just want to be with you. Age will just be a number to her."

Shifu gazed at her, unblinkingly, and shocked by her wisdom. She got up, and bent down to his level. "Just tell her." Yuming then was gone. The little red panda blinked, and then sighed.

"I will."

He sighed when he heard a loud thump, and an "ow." Shifu guessed that she had tripped on something and fell on the ground.

"Crazy kid."


	7. Put your poker face on, Yuming

I'm on a roll!

* * *

Put your poker face on, Yuming

7

Yuming was shuffling a stack of cards. She was going to stack cards and make a house. When Yin and Yang came in, they wanted to play. "Yuming!" Yin called. "Whatta ya doing?"

"Well, I was going to make a house of cards," she said.

Yang pulled up a chair and sat up, resting his arms on the wooden table. "Is there any type of card games in Russia?" he asked.

"Well, yeah," she said, resting the deck on the table, and helped Yin up in a chair. "It's called _Durak_. It means 'idiot' or 'fool' in Russian. It is played with one or six players. The main goal of the game is to get rid of the other players' cards. The one who has no cards left is the fool. So, whatta play?"

The rabbits nodded, as Yuming severed them each six cards, and gave herself six cards. She placed the deck in the middle of the table. "Jus' to spice things up, each time you make the other person loose a card, you get five yuan. How 'bout it?"

Yin and Yang nodded, tossing twenty yuan on the table. Yuming placed forty on the table. She pushed then pile of money into the centre of the table. "Now, back in Russia, I was pretty damn good," she said, holding up her cards. "Get ready, kids."

Yuming took one of her six cards and placed it on the table, face up. "Now, this is an attacker card," she said. She turned to Yin. "Since you are on my left, you are the defender.

"Now, the _podkidnoy_ or the 'throw-in' variant has to immediately attempt in response to the initial attack. In the _perevodnoy _or the 'passing', the defender may choose to either defend or to pass the attack on around the table. But, the defender may attack if they have a card of the same number as the attacking cards. So, you now must beat all of the cards.

"If the person on the player's left—the new defender—has less cards in their hand than will be on the table after the 'passing' is not allowed—not at all. Got it? 'Kay, the new defender must decide a response for the new attack. Now, in a game involving four or less players, it is perfectly possible for the attack all away round the table, so the original attacker ends up defending.

"Now, the defender needs to beat the attacking cards by playing defending cards from their hand. One card is played in defense of each attacking card. If a card en't a trump, attacking cards may be beaten by either a higher card or a trump. Got it so far?"

They nodded. She went on for a little while more. She finally finished. "No, there are now winners, just a loser." Yuming cracked her knuckles. "Now, let's go."

Ten minutes had passed when Yuming lost all of her cards and money to the two rabbits. She gapped in shock. "Durak!" cried Yang. "You're the durak!"

Yuming took the cards, and placed more money on the table. She shuffled the cards, glaring. "I've never lost," she said. "And two seven-year-old rabbits kicked my ass." They laughed. "This is war."

They played again, and in thirteen minutes, Yuming lost—again. She glared at the rabbit children. She collected her cards, as Yang and Yin collected their money. "This is war," she said, pointing at them. Both laughed.

She went to The Hall of Warriors. Yuming lost all of her money to the rabbit children, the money she was suppose to give to Huo. She would just have to steal it from the children when they were sleeping. It was horrible that she would do that, but she had to. Yuming was realizing that she was becoming all too emotionally attached to the Five, the rabbits, Master Shifu and Po.

Yuming placed the cards into her bag that was slung on her shoulder. She crammed two metal throwing stars into the bag, along with the metal claw. She fit whatever she could into her tote bag. Yuming knew that the children would be asleep by now. She sunk into the room, and took the money. She felt like a bitch doing this.

She left the rabbits' room quickly. The lynx put the bag into her tote bag, and hid her larger bag in the closet. She closed the door slightly, making sure that she didn't awake the others. Yuming laid on her bedroll. She wanted this to be over, and in the morning, she would leave the Jade Palace, and give everything to Huo. She wanted all of this to be over. After that, she would runaway to Russia, and go back to her home. She just wanted to be free.


	8. Huo’s capture

Huo's capture

8

Yin and Yang awoke with hunger pain in their stomachs. It seemed like a normal day at the Palace, but something snatched the two of them up. Yuming awoke, determined to leave to Palace without a soul noticing. But when she was going out into the open yard, and saw Huo with the rabbit children in both of his huge paws. Yuming gasped. "Huo!"

The blue bear grinned insanely as the two rabbit children squirmed in his grasp. "Why, hello, Thief," he muttered. "Nice to see you again."

Yuming pointed a fat finger at the bear. "_Put them down_," she snarled a darkened tone in her voice. "Leave them alone."

But Huo's grasp never slackened. "Well, what the Hell type of tone is that?" he growled. "Where is my money, Yuming?"

Yin and Yang both looked terrified beyond words. Yuming held up her bag, opened it, and tossed the bag full of money at his feet. "There is your payment," she snarled. "Now the children."

Huo didn't release them, but instead held on to them, and moved Yin to his other paw so he could pick up the money. He pocketed it. "Why, thank you, Yuming," he said in a sinister tone. "But I don't think so."

"Huo! Let them go! They had nothing to do with this!" she roared.

Shifu and the other Five and the Dragon Warrior stopped cold when they saw Huo hold the rabbit children in his grasp. All went into attack positions, and Yuming's heart nearly stopped. "Let them go," snapped Shifu.

The bear glared at the red panda. "Well, if it en't Master Shifu," he said. "Nice to finally meet you in person! I see you've been watching after Thief for me."

Yuming growled. Huo tossed the rabbit children at Shifu and his students. They rushed behind the great kung fu masters. The blue bear moved over to Yuming, grabbing her arm hard. "Well, thanks for watching after her, but time for us to get going."

"Let her go!" Po cried.

"Why?" Huo asked. "Why would you want a lying little bitch to stay with you?"

"Don't call Yuming that!" Yin cried.

"Yeah!" Yang hissed.

"She's been lying to you all along, right, Thief?" Huo said, yanking hard at her arm.

"What are you talking about?" Shifu asked.

Huo looked at him. "You think that she was a friend, but you were wrong," he said. "She's nothing but my little servant. She does what I tell her to do. I told her to go to the Jade Palace to steal a few weapons for me and she did." Huo grabbed the bag and dumped it, showing all of the weapons that were in The Hall of Warriors. Everyone gasped, and Yuming didn't make any eye-contact with any of them. "She works for me."

Po looked at her. "Yuming?" he weakly called.

She looked at him, her eyes filled with hurt. "I'm so sorry for dragging you all into this," she whispered.

Po looked devastated. Huo released her arm, and pushed her back. "Now, Thief, fight them," he ordered. "Kill them. You have the power to."

Yuming's eyes widened. It was true, she did beat Shifu in a single practice fight, and she could easily kill them all. She stepped back, her ears down. Huo glared. "Are you deaf? Kill them."

_Enough of this_. Yuming's ears poked out, her stare became hard, she balled up her fists. "No."

Huo stepped back in utter disbelief. "What?" he snarled. "These people mean nothing to you. You have nothing. You have no family, no friends, _nothing_."

"I _do_ have something," she countered. Yuming pointed at the rabbit children, the Five, Master Shifu, and Po. "Them."

Huo looked and laughed. "_Them_? Don't be stupid! They don't care for you!" he roared.

Yin threw a rock at the head of the bear. He turned around. "I do!" she cried. "I love Yuming!"

Yuming could feel her heart melt at the sight of the little rabbit girl. Everyone went into a battle stance, willing to protect Yuming. Huo could feel himself become weak. He snarled, and punched Yuming in the eye. She stumbled back, and kicked him across the face. When she did, she ran, and Huo followed. "We gotta help her!" cried Monkey.

The group of kung fu masters attacked Huo. Yuming turned around, and saw that they were fighting the bear. She could run, and be free, and leave them. But she didn't. Yuming turned around, and lunged at Huo, sinking her claws into his back. He roared, and kicked her off of him. Monkey wacked him, but Huo slapped him away, like he hit a fly. The golden primate hit a rock, rendering him unconscious. Yuming looked at him, and rage filled her heart.

Huo ripped out some of the main feathers of Crane, now he couldn't fly. The bear threw him over a wall. Yuming bit the bear's thick neck, but he knocked her off, and kicked Po hard in the face. Huo grabbed Viper, twisted her, and threw her at Tigress, while knocking away Mantis. Shifu could tell that Huo knew Bear Style kung fu. The red panda lunged, but Huo grabbed him by the neck, strangling him. Yuming slashed his face, making him drop the master. Fresh, warm blood seeped through deep claw marks.

He roared, as Yuming ran. "Come and get me!" she cried. Huo chased after her, leaving the rest behind. Yin and Yang helped the kung fu masters up.

"Hurry!" cried Yin, waking up Monkey. "That bear's gunna hurt Yuming."

Yang helped Shifu to his feet. "She's right, let's go."


	9. Yuming’s daring sacrifice

I tried to update yesterday, but there was a glitch.

* * *

Yuming's daring sacrifice

9

Yuming found a steep cliff. She was unable to go anywhere else. The lynx turned around to face her nightmare. He stood there, scuffed up and bruised. Blood dripped from his face and onto his chest. "Got you cornered, Thief," he hissed.

Yuming went into an attack stance as Huo approached her. "After all I've done for you, you do this to me!?"

"You were nothing but an abusive creep!" she cried, her fur on its end. "You cut off my finger! You tore up my ear!"

Huo laughed. "Now, I'm going to kill you!" he hissed.

Yuming attacked, and he blocked. She threw a punch, and hit him in the eye. Huo grabbed her long braid, and wrapped it around his arm, yanking at her. She yelped in pain, but scratched his eye, causing him to let go. He pulled out a knife and cut into the open space, but chopped off her long braid. The fur fell onto the ground. Yuming jumped, and stuck her claws into his shoulders.

He knocked her away, and drove the knife tip into her arm. She kicked him, ignoring the pain, and threw the knife down into the canyon below them. Huo slashed his claws out, Yuming quickly blocked. She rolled away from under him, and found a branch to hit him with, and she did. He knocked it away, and grabbed her throat. She gagged from his strength, and couldn't feel the ground under her feet.

Yuming sunk her claws into his arm, but he held on fast. She drove them down his skin, making lines as she went. Huo dropped her. She kicked him out from under his feet, and drove her foot into his throat. He slashed her leg, and pushed her back. Yuming heard footsteps. It was her friends. She lunged, tossing back against the edge of the cliff. She grabbed the branch from before and found a deep crack in the dirt. Pulling it away would cause an avalanche. Yuming stuck the branch into the deep crack, and pulled to her right.

A rumble of earth filled Shifu's ears. Then they saw her, she was standing still, as Huo looked around franticly. He knew what she was doing. She was going to sacrifice herself so she could kill Huo in an avalanche. Po seemed to know as well, and cried: "Yuming!"

She looked up and saw her friends. Yuming smiled weakly as the earth under gave way. Huo panicked and began to run for his life. She jumped at him, pushing down into the falling rocks. He grabbed her leg, and pulled the lynx down with him. Rocks, dirt, and mud fell from the cliff side, falling into a long, deep river below it. Po gasped and ran to the end of the cliff.

He saw ripples of water, rocks that were piled on top of each other. A little dirt crumbled away from the newly-formed cliff end. "Yuming!" Yin cried.

All went over to the end, and gazed down. There was no way that she and Huo could have survived. They were crushed under the weight of the heavy rocks. Yin cried into Yang's shoulder, who cried into her shoulder. Po looked down, still unable to register what had just happened. "She's gone," Mantis whispered.

* * *

Water ripples hit the beginning of the river bank, bouncing back into the open water. The Five, the Dragon Warrior, and the rest of them went back to the Jade Palace to mourn the loss of Yuming. And to praise her for her bravery and noble sacrifice. Fish scattered away from the rocks as the head of Hong poked out of the water. He came out of the water, and in his arms was the cold, wet body of a certain lynx.

He placed Yuming on the ground, and looked at her. "Yuming," he whispered. He opened her mouth, and put his claws on her chest. He pushed down a few times, and then put his mouth on hers, giving her air. Hong did that a few times, until water rushed from out of her mouth, and she was gagging. He smiled at her.

Yuming looked up at him, her eyes parted slightly. "Hong," she whispered. "Am I dead?"

He chuckled. "No, you are not," he said.

Hong picked her up, and cradled her in his arms. "Did I kill him?"

"Yes, Huo is finally gone," Hong said. "You should be very proud of yourself."

Yuming smiled, and rested her head on his shoulder. "Can I go home?" she asked.

Hong smiled. "Of course, Yuming, of course," he said. Hong walked away from the river bank and up to the Jade Palace. Yuming closed her eyes and slept all the way.


	10. A real family

A real family

10

Mantis took out his acupuncture needles and stuck one into the side of Monkey. Everyone was quiet; the only sounds were the light sobbing of Yin. The small green bug moved over to Tigress, and placed a thin needle in her arm. Monkey sat down, supporting his weight on his knuckles. Shifu sat on a rock, staring at the ground. He felt horrible that he couldn't protect Yuming from the insane bear. The sun was setting, and hues of red and pink covered the Valley.

"That was so brave of her," said Monkey as Mantis stuck a needle into his neck.

"Yeah, she was very brave," he said. "Despite the fact she was using us, she came through."

Po sat down, as he helped Viper address her wounds. Crane stood there, watching in panic for the snake. Huo's sharp claws had dug into her skin, and ripped deep marks into her body. The panda was wrapping a heavy cloth that was dipped in a sticky fluid that was said to stop blood flow. Shifu came down, and helped Po with Viper.

"Yes, she deserves a proper burial prayer," Shifu muttered, wrapping a bandage around Viper's neck. Viper's tongue flickered out of her mouth.

Yin and Yang went over to Crane, and looked up at him. "Maybe she's alive," Yang said, holding his sister. "Maybe she made it."

All of the kung fu masters looked at them. "I don't think so, dear," whispered Viper, tearing up a bit. "I don't think so."

Then the door swung open, and there stood an alligator. Shifu reacted by jumping in front of his students to protect them, but gazed in pure shock. Yuming lay asleep in his protective arms. The alligator smiled calmly. "Hello, Master Shifu," he said. "I don't know if you know me, but my name is Hong. I knew Master Oogway."

"Yuming!" cried Yin in delight.

Both rabbits rushed over to Hong. Yuming stirred in her sleep, and her ears twitched. She opened her eyes and saw the two rabbit children. Hong helped her down, and stand up on her feet. She swayed a bit, but regained her balance and hugged the rabbits. Po rushed over. "You're alive!" he yelled, and engulfed her in a hug.

"Yes, hello, Po," she said with a smile. Yuming looked over at the rest of the smiling kung fu masters. "You guys don't look so hot."

Shifu smiled. "But you are alive," he said. "And that's a miracle all in itself."

Yuming smiled, and then frowned. "Listen, I'm so sorry for what I did," she said. "I shouldn't have brought you into this. I was so terrified of him, that my fear of him made me be controlled by him. I didn't want any of you to get hurt, that's what made me fight. I'm sorry, I can understand if you don't forgive me."

Everyone smiled. "We forgive you," Monkey said.

Yuming was stunned. "Really?"

Tigress went up to her. "Yes, you stood up for us and yourself," she said.

Yuming smiled, and released the rabbit children. "Thank you," Yuming bowed to them. "Thank you for ev'rything, but I think I must be going."

"Going?" Yin asked. "Where?"

"Dunno, here, there, ev'rywhere," she said.

Hong looked at her, sadly.

"Yuming, you can stay here, with us," Shifu said.

Yuming gazed at the red panda master. "What?"

"You can stay with us," he repeated. "This is your home now."

Yuming looked with surprise at Shifu, and then to Hong, who was smiling. She wanted a home, for such a long time. She smiled, nodding. "Welcome home, Yuming."

She followed the kung fu masters into the Jade Palace, promising to help them with their rooms. Yuming turned around to see Hong, but he was gone. Blinking, Yuming stared out into the empty space. "Yuming?" called Yang.

She looked down at him.

"C'mon," he said, pulling her paw, as Yin did the same.

She smiled at them. "Yes, I'm coming."

Hong watched as she and the rabbit children went into the building. He smiled, knowing that she had at long last a family. The alligator walked behind a tree, not appearing on the other side. It was like he vanished in the thin air. Hong would check up on her from time to time, but he knew that she was happy, happier than she had ever been in so many long years. He was in high spirits for her. After all, he promised Oogway that he would.


	11. Love always finds a way

Love always finds a way

11

It had been over a week since Yuming finally brought an end to Huo. She was wrapped in more bandages than Viper. Shifu sat under The Sacred Peach Tree of Heavenly Wisdom, looking up at the stars. They twinkled brightly, as the moon hung low in the dark sky. He hadn't told Tigress that he loved her, but he was planning to tonight. And just his luck, she was behind him. "Master?" she called.

His ear turned to her. "Tigress," he said, his tone was a little nervous. "What do you need?"

"Yuming told me that you wanted to see me," she said.

"I didn't—" He stopped himself. Shifu hadn't sent Yuming to get Tigress. She was setting them up for a date! He scowled a bit, knowing that this was Yuming's doing. He could just picture her giving him two thumbs up and silently cheering him on.

"So you didn't wish to see me?" Tigress asked.

He looked up at her. "No, no, come, sit down," he said, patting the space next to him.

She complied and sat next to him. Tigress's eyes glowed in the night, and she looked up at the sky. "Gorgeous, isn't it?"

"What is?" Shifu asked.

"The sky," she said, pointing up. "It's so beautiful."

"Yes, yes it is," Shifu said, looking directly at Tigress. He moved a little closer to her. "Tigress."

The female tiger looked down. "Yes, Master?"

"Have I been hard on you when you were growing up?" he asked.

Tigress didn't answer. Shifu looked up at her.

"I think I was much too harsh on you," he whispered. "You reminded me too much of Tai Lung."

Tigress's ears flattened against her head. "But you raised me, you gave me a home, food," she said, "and I'm happy you did."

Shifu took her paw into his small hand. "But I didn't show all that much affection towards you," he said softly.

"Yes you did, remember when I was terrified of thunder storms?" she asked. "You helped me there."

The red panda smiled, remembering when she was crying so loudly that he could hear it from outside. It was a horrible thunderstorm. He was alarmed that something happened to her, but saw her curled up against the wall, crying. Shifu stood, and slept with her all night, to make she was alright. He turned to her. "Yes, but I was too hard on you, and I'm sorry."

Tigress smiled. "I understand why, and I forgive you."

Shifu smiled. "Thank you," he whispered. "I also want to tell you something else."

Tigress looked down at him. "What?"

He took in a deep breath. "I . . . I—" Shifu looked away. _It's just three words, just say it! Say it before it's too late!_

"Master?"

"I love you." He quickly placed his lips to hers.

Tigress was surprised by the action and felt as his small hands cupped her orange fur. She grew to like it and kissed him back, holding his waist. Both pulled back. "You do?"

He nodded, stroking her cheek.

"You still don't see me as a child?" she asked.

"I would never do this with a child," he murmured. "That would be disgusting." He kissed her lips again. Shifu pulled away. "But do you love me?"

Tigress nodded, pulling him closer to her body. "Yes, yes I do."

"An old man like me? You want an old man like me," he said, chuckling a bit, though it was dry.

Tigress pulled him down onto the grass, pinning him under her. "Yes, I want an old man like you," she said playfully, kissing his lips.

He returned it, holding her head, pulling her closer to his body. Just then, Monkey, Yuming and Mantis jumped from the bushes, cheering on the couple. Both broke away, embarrassed. "Yeah! Go you two!" Yuming cried, holding up her arms.

"That was so romantic!" Monkey called.

"You two were all over each other!" Mantis laughed.

Tigress threw a rock at them, and they scattered like sheep. All that could be heard was the yelling of Yuming: "Mantis, you owe me five yuan! I knew that they would kiss!"

Shifu scowled. "I'm going to kill them," he muttered.

Tigress took his head into her paw, turning his attention to her. "You left me out," she said. "_We'll_ kill them later." She kissed him.

Shifu held her head, and kissed her hotly. They held each other, stroking each others' fur, feeling each others' mouths, enjoying the others' tastes, smells. They pulled away, and rested on the grass, wrapped up in each others' arms. Shifu stroked the fur on Tigress's arm, as she traced one of his ears. They spent the rest of the night like that, happy and alone.


	12. AFIN commentary

A friend in need

Commentary

:D

Okay, this fic is done. I hope Yuming didn't seem all Mary-Sue. I wanted to make her a little troubled. I'm working on drawing my OCs, but I already put up Yuming. Go to my homepage and you'll see her. I hope you enjoyed this fanfiction. I normally have alternate endings for my fics, but not this time. I'm working on a sequel. :D But I need to finish one of my fics I'm working on. I'll see if I can finish my Monsters vs Aliens fic in time before school starts. D:

Yuimng Q., Yin, Yang, Hong, Huo © Me.

Shifu, Po, Tigress, Viper, Mantis, Monkey, Crane © Dreamworks.


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